The shaking of the earth dragon was transmitted directly to his hips, and Subaru licked his dry lips while trying to control their bouncing movements.
Right on time, my cell phone alarm rang, announcing the appearance of a white whale on the Leafous Highway in the twilight.
It takes about a minute for him to appear. The problem is that the time and place can't be determined down to the second or even down to the coordinates.
My eyes wander, my senses on edge, waiting for that moment.
And at the moment when he thought the moonlight was being blocked by a cloud, Subaru realized that the cloud was the underbelly of an enormous being, and he witnessed the fulfillment of his own memory.
At the same time, the others around them began to notice their presence just like Subaru, and as the signs of unrest began to spread, everyone waited for the call to be made for the planned simultaneous attack.
However, compared to the moment Crusch held her breath, Subaru and the others were quicker, if only by a mere half an instant.
"--- Attack me!!"
"--Alhuma!!"
Responding to Subaru's shout, Rem chanted the mana she had already begun to refine, directing it in a certain direction. The four long, massive ice spears she produced were as vicious as bundles of large trees, and they were thrust into the giant's torso with force that pierced the wind.
The sound of the tip of the icicle being crushed by something hard echoed, but just before it was shattered, the tip buried itself slightly into the beast's stomach, widening the wound and perforating it - spilling blood.
The white whale's scream roared across the plains, and Subaru and Rem's earth dragon took off in a burst, feeling the air tremble so much it numbed their eardrums.
--To be clear, this was by no means something that Subaru and the others had acted hastily.
If he had not been able to act at that moment, if he had been even a fraction of a second late, the White Whale would have realized this preemptive attack.
That moment was the turning point. And even though she knew that the slightest hesitation could mean the difference between life and death, even someone as great as Crusch was left breathless by the majesty of the White Whale.
Even if they were half certain that something like that was coming, when the facts occurred, ripples were created in people's minds. Ripples, however small, can cause distortions in thinking, and distortions can lead to stagnation, and stagnation can lead to defeat - the start of the battle was precarious, and we were on the verge of starting at a disadvantage.
Nevertheless, the reason Subaru and the others got there in time could be summed up in one word: the "power of love."
The existence of the magic device and its reliability in its function - Crusch and the others were a split second late in making their decision because of their distrust in that area, which could not be called certain. They were also impatient as the demonic beasts did not show their faces, so it was no wonder that their judgment was slightly clouded.
But Rem had never doubted Subaru's words, that the White Whale would appear at that very moment, without a shadow of a doubt.And so, she matched the time Subaru had suggested, crafted a spell with the maximum firepower she possessed, and cast it the moment she confirmed the appearance of the White Whale.
What else could this be called but Rem's love?
"If you analyze it like that, it's super embarrassing--!"
"Subaru, please hold on tighter. You'll get thrown off!"
As Subaru analyzed how to end the battle in his own way, Rem, who was holding the reins of the earth dragon, shouted. Her words were part of the plan - the second stage after the preemptive attack.
"Everyone - those idiots keep going!!"
Behind them, half a step behind Subaru and the others, Crusch gave the command, and one by one the extermination squad ignited their cannons―― the loaded magic ores were fired, and as they exploded in mid-air they were transformed into destructive forces that corresponded to their colors, and struck the body of the white whale one after the other.
Fire, ice, and clods of earth turned into blades, spears, and hammers and were slammed down, widening the wound Rem had made, and a mist of blood spurted out from the writhing giant's frame, raining down a thick black rain on the highway.
Dodging the blood that covered its field of vision like a drizzle, the Earth Dragon made a detour around the White Whale with nimble movements, heading towards its rear. Everything was going according to plan.
"I'll make the extermination squad aware of my presence, and move around in a way that forces them to basically have my back!"
"The Darkness Repelling Crystal will shatter, please close your eyes!!"
Already in combat mode, a pure white horn can be seen peeking out from Rem's forehead.
Subaru hurriedly followed Rem's orders, looking up and baring her teeth, then looked down and closed his eyes―― and in the next moment, the world flashed in an instant.
The white light exploded in the sky, instantly consuming the world in a white glow.
Subaru's throat tightens in surprise at the intensity of the light, which still pierces his closed eyelids and attacks his optic nerves. Then, a few seconds later, he timidly opens his eyes and looks around,
"Wow, it's just as I heard. Amazing."
The darkness of night was cleared away, revealing a world that was as clear as day.
Above, shining in place of the already-setting sun, was the 『Darkness-Punishing Crystal』 that had been launched at the same time as the preemptive attack on the White Whale. When shattered, it creates an artificial light source, a crystal that has the effect of illuminating the darkness, although normally it only gives off a very faint glow and illuminates the dimness.
"So, you crush all those people who bought mountains of stuff out of money and connections, and you create a pseudo sun."
"If we hide in the night, even the giant body of the White Whale won't be easy to find. Come on, let's start from here!"
The effect of the crystal stones that the two leading merchants in the royal capital joined forces and ran around to gather.
The Leafous Highway, which had been submerged in night, was now filled with the brightness of day, bringing the world that had previously relied solely on moonlight into sharp focus.
In other words, at the same timeーー,
"That's it...!"
--This will do nothing less than reveal the full extent of the demonic beast known as the "White Whale," which has never before been clearly seen in the sunlight.
"------!!!"
Perhaps angry at being exposed to the light of day, the white whale opened its huge mouth and roared. The roar it emitted was no longer merely a sound, but was close to an act of destruction. The air rumbled, and the violent roar created fear even in the wild, trained earth dragons.
The strange entity that brought this about had blood spilling from all over its massive body, but its movements lacked the slightest bit of vitality as it looked down on the humans who were challenging it.
"Oh, how big..."
His throat trembled, even though he hadn't intended for it to tremble, and Subaru couldn't stop the numb feeling in his limbs that rendered him unable to move. The threat of the White Whale, something that Subaru had seen, touched, and had stolen from him up until then, was clearly thrust upon him, and was only a small part of its existence.
White Whale - as its nickname suggests, the beast's appearance was covered in white.
Its rough, rock-like skin was covered in countless white hairs, and its toughness meant that even half-hearted attacks could not inflict damage on its inside. The full shape of the thing seen through the distance was indeed very similar to the whale he knew about, but its size was twice as large as he had expected.
As far as Subaru knew, the largest whale in the world was the blue whale―― with a total length of around thirty meters, it could be said to be literally the largest and heaviest mammal.
However, the size of the white whale seen with the naked eye easily exceeded 30 meters, approaching 50 meters. At this size, it looked more like a mountain than a living creature.
A single white rock mountain is swimming leisurely in the sky, as if it were some kind of joke.
"Subaru-kun."
A voice called out to Subaru, whose teeth were clenching in fear and whose fingertips were beginning to tremble.
It belonged to a girl with her back to him, clinging to Subaru around the waist of her small body. Right in front of him, so close you could practically hear her breathing, she didn't turn to look at him,
"Are you scared?"
It is not provocation that calls, but trust.
Subaru bit down hard on the roots of his teeth and twisted his mouth,
「Yes, it's scary. ——If I defeat that thing and get praised, how bright my future will be!」
As she answered the girl's questions with a flippant remark, Subaru tapped her on the shoulder in front of him from behind,
"I'm entrusting my life to you! Come on, let's run away!"
"Rem's life also belongs to you, Subaru. --Then let's do that."
Subaru gave a thumbs up, bravely ordering them to flee, and Rem smiled softly and clattered the reins. The earth dragon responded, neighing, and, undaunted by the strange creature before it, raced across the earth, kicking up dust.
Subaru and the others head straight for the bottom right of the white whale, which is facing them - aiming to run diagonally and go around to the tail.
The white whale's enormous eyes were trained on Subaru and the others, leading the way and approaching him closely. Its jaws were open enough to swallow a house whole, its mouth filled with millstone-like teeth sucking in the air, preparing to let out a roar in their direction.
The roar that had thwarted their advances earlier came again, and Subaru and the others braced themselves―― above their heads,
"Looking elsewhere is quite an understatement--!!"
An invisible blade slashed sideways, cutting the head of the white whale, whose mouth was open, in a shallow, straight line.
There wasn't even the sound of the blade scraping against the rock, and the slash cut through the hard rock surface, causing blood to spurt out again from the white whale's massive body.
Turning around and looking towards the source of the blade, he saw that the leader of the extermination squad, following Subaru and the others, was the earth dragon pulled by Crusch. Standing on the back of the refined black earth dragon, a beautiful woman appeared to have unleashed a slash while giving a brave speech――and on her free-swinging arm,
"I don't have anything...!?"
"An intangible sword that ignores range - the famous "One Hundred Swords," a sword technique of Lady Crusch."
Rem responded in a low voice to Subaru's surprise.
Though I am not well versed in the anecdote she spoke, I can roughly understand the situation just from reading it. I can also understand why Crusch's fighting ability, which seems so unarmed, is so impressive.
The initial movement was thwarted by an invisible slash, and the White Whale's movements were halted as a pursuit began.
The members of the extermination squad continued to release their magic stones, and with the firepower concentrated on the White Whale's giant body, the bullets hit it one after another, dealing damage and causing the writhing giant to lose altitude.
The huge body of the White Whale, which had been at the same height as the clouds up until then, sank, and when its height was no longer such that it had to tilt its head straight up, that wasーー,
"--Within reach of the blade."
The Earth Dragon leapt into the air, leaping with agility belying its gigantic size. Still, the difference in mass was clear when compared to the mighty White Whale. The Earth Dragon floating in front of its nose must have looked like a tiny insect to the White Whale,
--The sword flashed straight and cut a deep vertical split in the tip of the demon beast's nose.
The sound of the roaring battlefield ceased as the silver sliced through the white rock with ease. It was not the result of magic, or ore imbued with magical power, or the destruction brought about by a formless blade, but proof that a lump of iron had been wielded by a human hand.
It was proof that the state of mind that a human being had spent the majority of his long life attained had indeed reached the nose of the demonic beast that created the mist and painted the world white.
"-Fourteen years."
The figure thrust a sword into the tip of its split nose and crouched down, muttering to itself.
He stabbed the sword on the opposite side of the one he had swung, maintaining his stance, striking it and brushing away the blood that had soaked the blade - and his trained back - and there, he was clad in a surge of sword energy so strong that it distorted the air,
"I've just been dreaming of this day."
The white whale twists its body in response to the shadow stretching its back. As if trying to shake off the shadow that is resting on the tip of its nose, the huge body of the white whale twists in mid-air and does a barrel roll, cutting through the air.
A strong wind blew through the air above the highway, and everyone gasped and opened their eyes wide at the result of the giant's swimming ability.
However,
"----!!"
The White Whale twisted its body back to its previous position, its throat trembling in pain, its tail swinging wildly as fresh blood spilled out. A horizontal cut had been added to the vertical wound from earlier, and a cross-shaped wound had appeared on the White Whale's forehead. A shadow stepped lightly on its back.
--The Sword Demon grinned, his wrinkled cheeks cruelly distorting.
"Fall here and leave your corpse behind. You lump of flesh."
Saying this dismissively, Wilhelm's body cut through the air as he readied his sword with both hands.
The blade swung around cuts into the rock surface of the White Whale, running from the head to the tail and down its back. It slices through the hard, tough rock surface with ease, scattering a dark mist of blood into the air as it sprints, a true 『Sword Demon』.
The white whale, possessed by Wilhelm's body and shaking its massive body, was unable to land an effective blow on him. In an attempt to shake off the lightly running old swordsman, he once again swam through the air, wrapping himself in a hurricane-like circle, but...
"You're quite cooperative, coming all the way to get slashed."
Just before the White Whale's body rotated in the air, Wilhelm made a short leap and stabbed his sword, lifting himself up. The blade of the sword pierced the White Whale's body as it spun around on the spot, and the White Whale offered its own body to the blade.
The Sword Demon, half of its body covered in the gushing blood mist and stained red, laughed. Laughing, the old man swung both of his swords upwards and towards the side of the giant. The blades slashed down, scraping vertically against the rock face on the side, before slicing flesh away as they swung down in a V shape.
A deafening scream echoed through the air, and as Wilhelm fell, the White Whale's tail struck him sideways. However, just before the direct hit, Wilhelm's Earth Dragon rushed in and picked up the old swordsman, allowing him to slip out of the range of the attack. Then, in a fit of rage, the White Whale tried to chase Wilhelm,
"How rude, you idiot. We're your opponents too!!"
A single blow from the hatchet penetrated the mouth, gouging out the white whale's tooth, which was so large it could be held in its arms, at the base, and with a dull thud the yellowish molar was blown off.
Moving diagonally across the face of the white whale was Ricardo, astride his liger and cheering. The large dog, which was said to be lighter than an earth dragon, demonstrated its agility to the fullest, running around the body of the white whale, which was flying through the air with its master still on its back.
"Well, well, it's not over yet!!!"
Ricardo's machete was swung down on the back of the running Liger, spitting and shouting abuse. The beastman smashed the bedrock, gouging out the flesh underneath and scattering blood. The Liger that was following him also used its fangs and claws generously, widening the resulting wound deeper and sharper.
And following Ricardo's example,
"Well then, here we go!!"
"Don't get too ahead of yourself, Big Sis! Everyone, now!"
As the twin vice-leaders, kitten beastmen riding small ligers, scattered and gave orders, the ligers of the beastman mercenary group attached themselves to the white whale's body one by one, running around its vast flesh and beginning to trample it down.
Spears and swords were swung, and while most of them were bounced off the rock face, damage was surely done through their shattered skin. They looked like beasts swarming with poisonous insects.
As he swung around at the enemy that clung to his body in various places, inflicting small but serious wounds on him, the White Whale exposed the weakness of his massive body, which was unable to maneuver quickly.
"--Everyone, move away!!"
Crusch's roar pierced the battlefield, and the mercenaries who had been attached to the White Whale all jumped back from its body. The Liger, which had been flying through the air, landed lightly on the ground, and seeing this, the White Whale made a wide turn, intending to launch a counterattack - but that judgment was wrong.
"You've exposed your side――!"
Crusch's second strike was from above――a cross-cut slash that sliced the White Whale's side diagonally, and a follow-up attack followed soon after.
This was an attack from the troops that had not taken part in the attack up until now and had been solely focused on chanting magic.
「――――!!」
The chants come together, creating destruction out of refined mana. In a contradictory landscape where the sun and moon exist simultaneously in the sky, a second sun appears low in the sky.
Even though he understood that it was the concentrated thermal power of fire magic, he couldn't take his eyes off the brutal sight of the world being instantly roasted by the intense heat.
The large fireball, over ten meters in diameter, burns the skin even at a distance, and burns to rob the moisture from the eyelids. When the fireball gained an initial speed that made it flicker,
"--Whooooo!!"
The initial speed immediately changed to acceleration, and the large fireball made a direct hit on the torso of the white whale, which was facing its side― the flesh was burned from the wound, the heat caused its internal organs to boil, and the white whale's screams and explosions roared into the bright night sky.
The fireball broke apart, scattering burning debris across the plains, and the mercenaries below scrambled to take cover. Subaru and Rem joined them as they retreated, keeping their eyes on the white whale, its white fur blazing.
The overwhelming result of the attack - the ultimate success of the surprise attack - the White Whale is unable to even fight back. Could it be that they could get through this without letting anyone else do anything and with zero casualties?
"It seems to be working quite well! I think we can keep going like this!"
Subaru put some distance between them so the aftereffects of the flames couldn't reach them, and as the earth dragon came to a halt, kicking up a cloud of dust, Subaru clenched his fist in joy on its back.
In fact, they had completely subdued the White Whale and had dealt a fair amount of damage up to this point. It was unclear whether the previously organized extermination force was not strong enough, or whether they were simply fully prepared for this moment, but there was already a sense of elation that victory was within reach.
However, in response to Subaru's words,
"No. ーーTo be honest, I wanted to throw you to the ground just now."
Rem shook her head in frustration, glaring at the flaming beast floating in the sky.
Attracted by her words, Subaru looked up and narrowed his eyes suspiciously as he observed the white whale. Its entire body was burning from the flames that had spread to its white fur, and it was writhing, but there was no sign of the fire dying down. Injuries from slashes and magic ore had spread all over its body, and its blood was dripping from it, making it visibly painful to look at. However,
"The altitude... hasn't decreased."
The body of the white whale is still in the sky above.
It was not far enough that Liger could not reach it with his leap, but it was still too high for a single person to attempt. And most importantly, he couldn't move on to the next move until he brought him down to the ground.
"I discarded all the cards I had at the very start. If I still didn't fall, it means they're a step ahead of me in terms of toughness."
Ricardo came next to him, his machete slung over his shoulder and his fur wet with blood.
He snorted and shook his whiskers as he looked up at the white whale.
"From what I saw when I tried it, it's not easy to penetrate its thick skin. You have to use brute force like my prey, or have the skill of Vil-han, otherwise you'll be in a tough spot."
"That may be true for physical attacks, but it looks like the magical attacks are going through."
"That's a bit tricky. At first glance, it looks like the attacks are hitting with force, but the white hairs growing on her skin are scattering the mana and reducing the power of her attacks. Rem's attacks aren't hitting as well as they appear."
Rem spoke with frustration, noting that her maximum power magic was not working.
Subaru turned his head in response to her words, and could see that although there were indeed many shallow wounds on the White Whale's body, there were no immediate impediments to its ability to fight. But at the very least,
"The fire magic just now seems to have burned the white fur and gone right through."
"You can burn the hair to dissipate the magical power, and then use a blade to scrape off the charred skin underneath -- simple."
Ricardo bared his fangs ferociously in agreement with Subaru's insight.
He lowered the axe in his hand and struck the Liger on the back, then spun its head around and accelerated again, heading towards the front line.
"I'll whittle down their remaining strength in the same way as before! And I've asked Crusch-han to land that big hit at the right moment!"
He makes his own arbitrary orders, dives under the white whale, then jumps again and aims for its back.
Looking closer, Wilhelm, who had once put some distance between them, was now heading towards the White Whale from its tail, and the extermination squad, who had come to the same conclusion as Subaru and the others, had also swiftly moved into action.
In other words, the all-out attack will continue.
"The firepower is concentrated in their current state, so if we get too close we'll just get in the way. Rem, can't you use magic?"
"If it's on the same scale as before, it will take a long time to chant, and... as expected, the mana will be scattered and Rem's magic won't be able to do any damage. Anything less than that won't have enough firepower to begin with."
Following Ricardo's argument earlier, Rem would also have a better chance of jumping into the front line with a morning star in hand and using brute force to launch physical attacks against his bedrock-like body.
However, Subaru would be a hindrance to this, and if the subsequent operational plans Subaru had drawn up were to go along with this, Rem and Subaru could not be separated here.
"It's frustrating, but I guess I have no choice but to wait and see what happens...!"
"I'm frustrated here too though."
As he spoke, another earth dragon lined up next to the one Subaru and company were running at a slow pace. Clad in earth dragon armor, straddling the heavily armored earth dragon was a lightly-clad cross-dressed knight - Ferris.
He narrowed his eyes mischievously at Subaru and said,
"Feri-chan doesn't have many ways to attack, so she basically just watches. I guess you could say I'm used to it, but it still always feels frustrating."
"In return, you are the lifeline of the recovery-specialized extermination squad. It would be a problem if you were to take the lead. I beg you to just fill that role fully, okay?"
Subaru responded to Ferris, who hadn't changed his usual attitude even at this point. Ferris tilted his head in surprise and said, "Oh?"
"It feels like there's been a change in your state of mind. What happened, Subaru-kyun?"
"If I had to say, I've become a slightly better man."
Subaru answered with a sullen face, his eyes scanning the battlefield. Ferris nodded and put his finger to his lips, saying, "Hmm."
"Could it be that Rem-chan turned Subaru-kun into a man?"
The answer is yes and no.
Subaru was irritated by Ferris's thumbs up and vulgar laugh. Subaru was about to yell at the knight for not taking the time for something like that, but...
"Lord Wilhelm――!!"
Rem's shout made my eyes swiftly return to the front, and I caught sight of the old swordsman running on the back of the white whale.
Wilhelm held his sword vertically, pointing downwards, and cut the white whale's back vertically with the blade. Wilhelm's shadow ran from the tail to the back, and a fountain of fresh blood spurted out, chasing after him.
This is exactly what is meant by a lion-hearted performance.
The morale of the extermination squad rose due to the clarity of Wilhelm's slashes, which were hard to believe were coming from a single unit, and the group tactics of the mercenary group's Ligers and the successive throwing of magic ores gained momentum.
The white whale, writhing in pain in mid-air and making intermittent cries, is completely unable to cope with all of this.
The Mist Beast - the pitiful sight of this deformed creature that had tormented the world for so long, convinced Subaru that the winds were blowing in their favor.
"Teeeeeeyyyy!!"
With a flash of will, Wilhelm's sword split the white whale vertically up to its head, and the old man leapt out of the tip of the whale with ease. He spun around in mid-air, turning the old man upside down.
"Here you go!!"
Ricardo, who had jumped directly above, swung his machete.
The whirlwind's peak was aimed not at the White Whale, but at Wilhelm, who was upside down in mid-air. Wilhelm countered the blow by lining up the sole of his foot.
"Shhh!!"
Wilhelm's body was shot out as if bounced, and the swords he held in both hands went wild as they passed through the sides of the White Whale's face. The White Whale was mercilessly torn apart from its nose to its cheek. Not satisfied with just the wounds and blood, Wilhelm re-gripped the swords in both hands and stabbed them――
「――――!!」
The sword was buried deep in the white whale's huge left eye, and the crystals began to flow out from the back of the eyeball. Wilhelm instantly let go of the sword that was buried up to the hilt, and with both hands wrapped around the back of his waist he instantly pulled out two other swords and with a single slash - the slashes approaching from both sides cut straight across the top and bottom of the eyeball, and the blades instantly flipped over and split the wound vertically on both sides. As a result,
"My left eye is falling off!"
The square slash gouged a deep hole in the white whale's left eye, cutting it off.
The words that someone had spoken became reality, and the falling eye splattered red blood and white bodily fluids as it crashed into the ground with a tremendous roar.
A half-second later, Wilhelm landed right next to the eyeball that had fallen to the ground. He stabbed his sword into the rolling eyeball, then raised it up so that it looked like the white whale directly above it.
"--Disgraceful."
He spoke with the corners of his mouth turning up in a cruel smile.
The White Whale is at the mercy of the Sword Demon's fierce fighting style and is helpless. One of his eyeballs is gouged out, and it is clear that the difference in their fighting power is not influenced by the size of their bodies.
But the provocation was
"The color of the white whale's eyes...!"
"Here it comes!!"
"Subaru, please keep your head down――!!"
The moment he noticed the change, Ferris shouted and Rem accelerated the earth dragon.
Blast by the wind, his body being shaken by the sudden acceleration, Subaru hastily stabilized himself, and on the violent swaying of the ship, the image of the white whale was burned into his mind. --That change, that transformation, it was.
"----!!"
He roared, his remaining eye turning bright red in rage after it had been gouged out.
The White Whale glared down with blood-red eyes, leaning towards the extermination squad who, in a panic, began to distance themselves from the whale's crazy behavior. Then, a change began to take place in the White Whale's body.
—The moment it first happened, Subaru was unable to contain the feeling of disgust that was difficult to put into words.
The white whale's mouth opened.
No, that statement may seem correct, but it is not. To state the facts accurately, it is as follows.
--Countless mouths appeared all over the white whale's body, and they all opened at once, baring their teeth.
「――――!!」
A shriek-like roar vibrates high in the air of the plains, sending nasty claws directly into the minds of those it reaches.
Its roar sends shivers down the spine of not only humans, but also animals such as earth dragons and ligers. It calls out to their instincts, making them freeze up, and naturally turning them into defenseless prey.
and,
"----ah"
A "fog" that paints the world white is released from every mouth on the White Whale's body.
In an instant, it poured down across the plains as far as the eye could see, robbing the world of any light that should have been secured there and painting it completely white.
--The roar of the 『Mist』 demonic beast increases, and the difficulty of the subjugation battle skyrockets.
The end of the battle to defeat the White Whale is still not in sight.